Grate bar for sintering machines



Jun 29, 1943. w. 'H. MORIARTY 2, ,73-

GRATE BAR FOR SINTERING MACHINES Filed March 4-, 1941 I 3 Sheets-Sheet 1INVEIQTOR Wilson H. Ifrianjy aw )8 w ATTORNEY June W.H. MQRIAR Y2,322,873

GRA'I'E BAR FOR SINTERING MACHINES I Filed larch 4, 1941 :s Sheets-Sheet2 INVENTOR Elsa/z lfglofirty ATTORNEY June 29, 1943. w, o m-y 2,322,873

GRATE BAR FOR SINTERING MACHINES Filed March 4. 1941 I s Sheets-Shet :5

/:m m V cm m3 /3%: /I/Z g 2 INVENTOR ATTORNEY Patented June 29, 1943GRATE BAR- FOR SINTERING MACHINES Wilson. H. Moriarty, Shaker Heights,Ohio, as-

signor to NationalMalleable and Steel Castings Company, Cleveland, Ohio,a corporation of Ohio Application March 4, 1941, Serial No. 381,643

1 Claim. (01. 263-28) This invention relates to sintering machines andmore particularly to the pallets and the grate bars therein.

In the operation. of sintering machines there arises the problem ofeffectively discharging all of the sintered material from the pallets.cordingly, it is the main object of my invention to provide the palletsof the machine with a grate which during the course of travel of thepallets at the discharge end of the machine will effectively loosen thesintered material from the grate. A more specific object is to provide agrate for the pallet of a sintering machine in which the grate barsthereof are adapted to be displaced different amounts and in differentdirections with respect to the pallet as the latter moves from uprightto upside down position during the discharge operation. A moreparticular object is to provide a new and improved grate bar which isadapted to be mounted in the pallet in such a manner that the ends ofalternate bars will drop vertically from the pallet distances differentfrom the ends of the intermediate bars. A further object is to provide agrat bar the ends of which may drop unequal distances from the pallet,the means enabling such movement ing ends drop unequal distances fromthe pallet during the discharge operation, will also drop or slideunequal amounts with respect to the pallet in a direction longitudinallyof the bar.

Other objects and advantages of my invention will be apparent from thefollowing description, taken in conjunction with the drawings, in

which:

Figure 1 is a plan view of the pallet of a sintering machine with gratebars mounted thereon in accordance with my invention.

Figure 2. is a longitudinal vertical sectional View, taken on line 22 ofFig. 1.

Figure 3 is a diagrammatic view of a sintering machine, showing the pathof travel of the pallets therein.

Figure 4 is a transverse sectional view taken on line 4-4 of Fig. 1; and

N Figure 5 is a sectional View, taken along lines 5-5 of Fig.4.

Referring to the drawings, there is shown a pallet I which receives anddischarges the material to be sintered. This member may operate ontracks within the sintering machine in the usual manner along an endlesconveyor so that at the discharge end of the machine it drops to anupside down position and travels thus until the loading end is reachedat which time it is raised to upright position to receive the charge, asis shown in Fig. 3. The pallet frame is comprised of longitudinal sidemembers II and I2, longitudinal intermediate members l3 and I4 andtransverse connecting members l and it. Mounted on the longitudinalmembers are a plurality of like grate bars IT, a plurality of like gratebars Ila positioned between bars H, and two like end bars IS. The barsare all positioned to'extend in the direction of travel of the pallet,thereby permitting av shorter bar and a more flexible grate for thesintering process. The sides of the bars are recessed in a verticaldirection so that when the bars are assembled on the pallet, openings 19and are formed which permit the passage of air and hot gases through thechargeduring sintering. The end openings l9 are tapered so as to benarrower at the ends of the bars to more evenly distribute the blast ofair and hot gases over the entire grate surface.

In accordance with my invention the underside of each of bars I! and liais formed with downwardly extending lugs 45 and 45, and 49 and 50respectively. These lugs are adapted to underlie the longitudinallyextending stops 5| and 52 which may be in theform of bars secured to thelongitudinal members l3 andv l4 or they may be cast integral with saidmembers.

In assembling thebars I"! and Ila on the pallet each bar is lowered intothe space adjacent the side of either member !-5 or IS, with projections45 and 45. or 49 and 5!] between longitudinal intermediate members l3and I4. As the ends of stops 5| and 52 do not extend to members l5 andHi there is no interference between the stops and lugs 45 and 46 or 49and 5!! in this position of the bar. The bar may then be moved to thecenter of the pallet and the rest of bars H or Ila mounted inlikemanner. The assembly is completed by adding bars l8, one at each endof the pallet. These bars are held in place by means of pins 29, alimited amount of vertical movement of the bars being permitted by thelooseness of the fit of the pin in the pallet. Relative movement of'barsI8 in a direction longitudinally thereof is limited by projections 30which are adapted to engage members l3 and M. It will thus be clear thatduring upside down travel of the pallet all of bars are precluded fromaccidentally dropping out of the pallet.

As shown in Figs. 4 and 5 the stop lugs are so positioned that alternatebars are adapted to move in both vertical and horizontal directions withrespect to the pallet, amounts different from the intermediate oradjacent bars. Reference to Fig. 4 will show that lugs 45 and 46 providefor vertical displacement of bar H from the pallet and since lug 45 icloser to stop 5| than lug 46 is to stop 52, the two ends of grate barll will move different amounts vertically of the pallet. These lugs arealso spaced from walls l3 and M to provide movement of the barhorizontally of the pallet or in a direction longitudinally of the bar.The bar Ila immediately adjacent bar 44 is provided with lugs 49 and 50which also permit ,vertical movement of the bar away from the pallet.However, these lugs are spaced a lesser amount from walls l3 and I4 thanare lugs 45 and 46, and therefore the bar can not move as farhorizontally with respect to the pallet as bar 44. It will be apparentthat with this arrangement of lugs and stops when the pallet drops toupside down position, each end of bar I! or I la will drop apredetermined distance from the pallet, one and dropping further thanthe other. Furthermore, by arranging the bars with corresponding lugs ofalternate bars I! and Ila aligned, eachend of each alternate bar willdrop an amount different from the adjacent end of each intermediate bar.Thus, the corresponding ends of any two adjacent bars will be displacedunequal distances in a vertical direction from the pallet, with thesurface of one bar sloping oppositely from the surface of the other inrespect to the horizontal. This uneven dropping of the grate surfaceduring the discharge operation will actto effectively loosen thesintered mass and also to break up the material into suitable sizes. Itwill also be observed that since the retaining lugs are located beneaththe rate surface the movement of the bars away from thepallet will notbe impeded by any particles of material lodging between the lugs and thestops as may happen if the lugs and stops are positioned above the gratesurface. In addition, various combinations of movements of the bars arepossible, such as alternating the bars in groups of twos instead ofsingly so that the two adjacent bars will have their lugs aligned. Itwill accordingly be clear that by alternating the bars as shown in Figs.4 and 5,'one set of bars at the discharge end of the machine will moveboth in the direction of travel of the pallet with respect thereto andaway from the pallet in a vertical direction, while the intermediate setof bars will move in the same manner but in dilferent amounts due to thepositions of the lugs thereon. As the pallets move upwardly approachingthe charging end B of the machine shown in Fig. 3 the bars sliderearwardly on the pallet until lugs 45, 4 6 and 49, 50 all engage one ofwalls l3 or M, depending on the position of the pallet. As the palletmoves along its path during the discharge operation which takes place atend A of the machine, the bars will first slide in the direction oftravel of the pallet as it moves toward a vertical position until thelugs engage the opposite wall l3 or I4 as the case may be. However,since total amount of movement of adjacent bars longitudinally of thepallet is different, lugs 49 or 50 will contact the wall first and theadjacent bars having lugs 45, 46 will move still farther in order tocontact the wall. Thus there will be relative movement between adjacentbars in the direction of travel of the pallet. As the pallet continuesits movement toward upside down position the bars will drop away fromthe pallet until the lugs engage stops 5| and 52. The aforesaid relativelongitudinal movement between adjacent bars will also occur as thepallet moves upwardly towards the charging end of the machine since thebars will alternately move from one of walls H3 or 14 into engagementwith the other of said walls.

The terms and expressions which I have employed are used as terms ofdescription and not of limitation, and I have no intention, in the useof such terms and expressions, of excluding any equivalents of thefeatures shown and described or portions thereof, but recognize that"various modifications are possible within the scope of the inventionclaimed.

What I claim is:

In a sintering machine a pallet comprising a pair of side wallsextending lengthwise of the pallet and a plurality of grate supportingwalls extending transversely of the pallet and joining 5 said sidewalls, stop members extending along certain of said grate supportingwalls and terminating short of said side walls so as to form verticalpassages between the ends of said members and said side walls, aplurality of grate bars on said grate supporting Walls each havingdepending lugs underlying said stop members, said lugs being of lesserthickness than said passages so as to pass through the latter duringassembly of said bars with the pallet, said lugs having horizontal andvertical stop surfaces, the horizontal urfaces of the lugs on adjacentbars being spaced unequal distances from the under sides of said stopmembers and said vertical surfaces of the lugs on adjacent bars beingspaced unequal distances from the sides of said stop members so as toprovide for unequal movement of said bars away from and longitudinallyof said pallet as the latter is inverted, other grate bars engaging saidside walls for limiting movement of said plurality of grate bars towardsaid side walls, and means on said pallet limiting movement of saidother grate bars away from said pallet when the latter is inverted.

wILsoN I-I. MORIARTY.

